Levant sub-class
The Levant sub-class '''(also known as the '''Enterprise-II '''and '''Constitution-III sub-classes) of the Constitution class heavy cruiser lineage was a class of vessels consisting of both converted vessels of previous classes and new-build vessels. Originally a class of seven vessels constructed from 2284 and entering service from 2288, it also came to include scores of ships converted from prior sub-classes. They were effectively a second batch of the Enterprise sub-class Heavy Cruiser of the First Rate with a series of moderate equipment upgrades. As such and with the completion of a second U.S.S. Enterprise to these specifications (as NCC-1701-A), the Levant sub-class also became known as the "Enterprise-II sub-class". The naming convention was further confused when Constitution-class ships from all prior sub-classes began to be refitted or uprated to the Levant sub-class specifications from 2284. This was as a result of lessons learned from the Taal Tan Offensive of 2283, and many conversions were completed before the new-build vessels themselves entered service. For this reason these specifications are also known as the "Constitution-III sub-class". These ships are alternately known by the following designations: * Levant sub-class * Enterprise sub-class Batch 2 * Enterprise-II sub-class * Constitution-III sub-class * Constitution-class Batch 6 * Constitution-class Mk VIII Class History The Taal Tan Offensive of 2283 resulted in heavy losses in all ship types for Starfleet, with a disproportionately large number of the losses in heavy cruisers being from the Second and Third Rate sub-classes. As a result of this, all Second Rate new construction was cancelled and all ongoing Second and Third Rate uprating programs below a certain state of completion was halted pending a review. That review process was started immediately upon the conclusion of hostilities on 24th November 2283 (stardate 7865.2) and a hurried but thorough analysis of the First Rate Enterprise sub-class was performed, viewed through the lens of Starfleet's Taal Tan experiences. It was found that the basic design could not be improved upon any further but that numerous smaller-scale technological advances across numerous areas of shipboard equipment could be incorporated into the now decade-old design. This review and its resulting relatively minor redesign was completed within six months but within that time the devastating Battle of Khatanga on the 19th of February 2284 (Stardate 7906.3) proved the need for proceeding with this updating of Starfleet's premier multi-role ships. New construction using the remaining hull numbers between the Miranda- and Surya-class ships was authorised immediately to replace war losses in heavy cruisers, and all surviving Enterprise and Tikopai sub-class ships were slotted into shipyard schedules for uprating to this new "Enterprise-II" sub-class. Further, ships badly damaged and awaiting rebuilding from Taal Tan were immediately slated to be uprated to Levant/Enterprise-II specifications regardless of their then-current sub-class. One of the first ships to undergo this was the Third Rate Endeavour sub-class heavy cruiser [[U.S.S. Indefatigable, Constitution class|U.S.S. Indefatigable]]. Her damage was so extensive that battlefield triage rules had been used and she had been placed at the bottom of the repair and refitting schedule, with her crew reassigned to other vessels as replacement crew for war losses. More triage decisions like this after the loss of both the former flagship U.S.S. Enterprise and then-current flagship [[U.S.S. Hood, Constitution class|U.S.S. Hood]] to the Klingons in 2285 meant that several older ships entered service as Levant/Enterprise-II sub-class ships before either the U.S.S. Levant or the U.S.S. Enterprise-A were themselves commissioned. Prime among these ships were the surviving Enterprise sub-class vessels which required only a three-month refitting, and the Tikopai sub-class vessels which required a longer eight-month refitting. With the decision to dispense with the rating system it was planned that all existing Constitution class ships – that is, all vessels of all sub-classes – would be uprated to the Levant sub-class specifications. As a result of this planned "re-unification" of the heavy cruisers once again into a uniform, homogeneous "Constitution class", the Levant/Enterprise-II specifications also became known as the Constitution-III sub-class. This was to further differentiate them from the existing Constitution-II sub-class, and also presumably anticipating the day when all ships would be of the Constitution-III specification, wherein the "-III" would be dropped. Class Design Externally, these vessels are almost identical to the earlier Enterprise sub-class vessels, with only minor differences in outer hull detailing betraying their true sub-class. Internally, the latest generation software and equipment marques of existing load-outs were installed. Class Comparison The Levant/Enterprise-II/Constitution-III sub-class is directly and favourably comparable to the preceding Enterprise sub-class, though double-digit percentage point improvements in almost all areas of operation were observed. These ships represent the cutting edge of current Federation technologies, whereas the Constellation and Excelsior classes represent new, untried approaches to current and next generation technologies respectively. Future Developments With yet another full-scale war with the Klingons looming on the horizon an old development was re-authorised for the Constitution class: rear-firing torpedo tubes. First instituted on the Indefatigable sub-class in preparation for the seemingly inevitable war with the Klingons in the 2260s, the refits of the 2270s ignored this in favour of a more peaceful defensive stance for the Federation's heavy cruisers. Adding further heavy weapons emplacements such as doubling the number of photon tubes carried by them was deemed provocative and edging the prime ambassadors of the Federation into the battlecruiser type, and as such was vociferously resisted by the Pacifist Bloc of the Federation Council, especially in light of the Organian Peace Treaty being proven to be enforced. However, with the Taal Tan Offensive nullifying the Organian Peace Treaty, the Battle of Khatanga nullifying the Federation's own Treaty of Archanis, and "no peace while Kirk lives!" dooming any attempt at a lasting peace with the Klingons during the 2280s, a more potent defensive stance was deemed necessary. In 2291 the original Levant sub-class heavy cruiser U.S.S. America NCC-1847 was fitted with more powerful and thus larger impulse engines, and more importantly, aft-firing photon tubes fitted on the existing photon deck, firing out from between the nacelle pylons. Upon completion his ship will be posted to the Deep Space Testing Range for war games with Starfleet's famed Aggressor Squadron for battle simulations with Starfleet's captured Klingon vessels to determine her viability. Once finished there, she will be posted to the most active part of the Klingon border in anticipation of regular skirmishes with Imperial Navy vessels for a direct combat field trial. It is unclear how she will perform in a real combat situation, so several deployments have already been scheduled as part of differing task forces. The first deployment will be in accompaniment with other vessels sporting aft-firing photon tubes such as the Miranda class light cruiser, Excelsior-class advanced heavy cruiser, and Andernach-class battlecruiser. The second deployment will be with vessels without aft-firing photon tubes such as fellow Constitution-IIIs, Constellation-class, and Knox-class vessels. She will be tested in solo missions and as part of these task forces to determine the viability of the system and its operation, with an eye towards instituting this design modification to all Constitution-class vessels. Members of the Class * [[U.S.S. Agincourt, Constitution class|U.S.S. Agincourt]] NCC-1813 * [[U.S.S. America, Constitution-class|U.S.S. America]] NCC-1847 * U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-A * [[U.S.S. Indefatigable, Constitution class|U.S.S. Indefatigable]] NCC-1760 * [[U.S.S. Kongo (Constitution class)|U.S.S. Kongo]] NCC-1710 * U.S.S. Krieger NCC-1726 * U.S.S. Levant NCC-1843 * [[U.S.S. Musashi, Constitution class|U.S.S. Musashi]] NCC-1804 * [[U.S.S. Ranger, Constitution class|U.S.S. Ranger]] NCC-1707 Category:Starfleet Ship Classes